Offered for only one year, the split-window coupe is Corvette royalty. This example, to be offered at the Barrett-Jackson Las Vegas sale, has some additional special features.

The distinctive two-piece rear window of the 1963 Sting Ray coupe, and how it came to be, is a treasured piece of Corvette lore. General Motors styling boss Bill Mitchell loved the gimmick, as the story goes. He thought the novel detail gave the redesigned second-generation Corvette an extra bit of flair. Meanwhile, Corvette development guru Zora Arkus-Duntov hated it. Always favoring function over form, the chain-smoking engineer resented the way it obstructed the driver’s vision. Mitchell somehow got his way, but only for the first year of the C2 Corvette. For ’64, Duntov ruled the day and the Sting Ray coupe received a one-piece backlite without the center divider.

As a ’63, this Corvette coupe from the Jim Osterman collection, to be offered at the Barrett-Jackson Las Vegas auction on October 3-5, sports the signature split rear glass with center divider, naturally. And there are a few more special features as well.

This Sting Ray wears an extra-cost, one-year-only exterior finish called Sebring Silver. Developed by the Engelhard Corporation of New Jersey, the paint was one of six Fire Frost colors used by GM in 1963 (five by Cadillac, one for Corvette). A forerunner of GM’s Firemist exterior colors, Fire Frost used aluminum-coated polyester flakes in the pigment to create a super-metallic effect. Sebring Silver paint (code 941, $80.70) was not a particularly rare option in 1963 as 3,516 Corvettes were so equipped, but it is a distinctive one, with an added bit of light-dancing flip-flop in the finish compared to conventional metallic paints.

The Osterman coupe also happens to be a Fuelie—Corvette lingo for the Rochester mechanical fuel injection system used by Chevrolet from 1957 through 1965. While not as advanced as today’s high-tech electronic fuel-injection systems, the Rochester setup did offer one critical advantage over carburetors of the era, eliminating fuel slosh and starvation under high cornering loads. Boasting 327 cubic inches and 360 horsepower, this Fuelie was the most powerful engine offered in a Corvette in 1963, adding $430.40 to the base price.  And with a compression ratio of 11.25:1 and the rumpty-rump 097 solid-lifter camshaft (also known as the Duntov cam of song and story)  the 327/360 is one of the best-sounding small-block V8s ever produced by the factory.

Other noteworthy options on this specimen include Kelsey Hayes knock-off wheels and a salad-wilting black vinyl interior (below). Also worth mentioning: The restoration was performed by noted street-rod builder and TV reality-show personality Boyd Coddington, and in 1992 the car earned an NCRS Second Flight Award. As part of the 11-car Jim Osterman collection of classic Corvettes to be offered at the Barrett-Jackson Las Vegas sale, the Split-Window Fuelie will be sold at no reserve. Auction officials haven’t provided a pre-sale estimate, but according to the reliable Hagerty Insurance price guide, concours-grade examples of the ’63 Sting Ray coupe are known to price in the $142,000 range. Given its equipment and condition, this example should easily match that figure.  –Photos by Barrett-Jackson.